Cimatu urges creation of enforcement bureau amid DENR worker murders

Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Roy Cimatu on Monday urged Congress to support the creation of an enforcement arm for the department.

“Counting the number of people killed in the line of duty under my watch as DENR chief is disturbing if not outright enraging,” Cimatu said in a statement. “Again, I urge Congress to support us in our call for the creation of an Enforcement Bureau that will give the DENR stronger enforcement powers.”

Last week, Joash Peregrino, a special investigator at the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) in Surigao del Sur's Bislig City, was shot to death in his car in front of a store near the DENR office.

DENR CARAGA Regional Executive Director Felix Alicer said Peregrino, who was handling numerous land conflict cases in the Bislig office, recently received his regular appointment as a special land investigator.

"The killing of our colleague, Special Investigator Peregrino, may also have something to do with the strengthened efforts of our personnel at the field offices led by our CENR officers, on anti-timber poaching and smuggling," Alicer said.

Cimatu himself called on the police to bring Peregrino’s killers to justice.

Nevertheless, Cimatu emphasized that the DENR would intensify its drive against environmental offenders. “Though our intensified actions against violators of environmental laws are taking a toll on our people, we will not relent,” said the secretary.

Among the other DENR civil servants who were murdered was forest ranger Bienvenido Veguilla Jr., who was hacked to death last September 4 when his team came across illegal logging activities while patrolling in El Nido, Palawan.

On September 11, Gaudencio Arana, a long-time DENR informant at CENRO Munoz in Nueva Ecija, was killed by motorcycle-riding gunmen.

On October 25, Forest Ranger Ronaldo Corpuz, who was also assigned to CENRO Munoz, was shot dead by unidentified suspects outside his house. — Joviland Rita/DVM, GMA News